Internal Conflict
by AngelEmperor
Summary: Lelouch Lamperouge and Suzaku Kururugi: detectives in Britannia's capital city of Pendragon. Solving murders inevitably leads to the darker side of cities, but when that side is comprised of your own family, you're bound to become entangled. AU; Suzalulu


This idea hit me one night as I was watching TV, I noticed several commercials for police-based crime dramas and it had me thinking... "What if I did that... with Code Geass?" A flood of plot ideas hit me after that and this fic was created. I'm terribly sorry if I made any major errors with writing crime fiction, I've actually never really watched any of those shows, or read any novels of the genre: I'm completely new to this kind of writing. I've started to watch a few, so hopefully that element will get better as the fic progresses. Please bear with me for now. ^_^

It is, obviously, AU, but also Suzalulu, and it's going to end up quite long. The basic premise is this: Lelouch and Suzaku are detectives working at the Pendragon Police Department (Many of my fellow Code Geass fans will recognize this as Britannia's capital city, but this is not the same world as the one in Code Geass. There is obviously a Britannia here, but it's less of an empire, and more of a normal country. For example, Japan is free.) but of course, they're emotionally unstable, have messed up pasts, and all that other (not so) good stuff. I'll leave it at that for now.

As for warnings, not much in this chapter other than a bit of language and violence, but there will be more of that in later chapters, so I might as well get that out there now.

Long blocks of italics are events that took place in the past. I don't think there should be too much confusion on that, but I did have a friend ask about it, so I figure I'll put it here to be safe.

And I don't own Code Geass or its characters, only this story! Now, without further ado, here's the first chapter. Please enjoy!

* * *

"_It's natural that the shadows grow darker as the city gets brighter." – Touko Aozaki, Kara no Kyoukai 7_

_

* * *

_

Pendragon might be what one would call an unfortunate city. Districts filled with tall and glassy, modern buildings are there beside the dull old ones, melting away into darkness. The center shimmers with iridescent lights and smiling faces while the outer edges are dyed with blood in the expanse of the darkness.

But is that not typical for many cities?

It's a given that nighttime can cloak things that someone would like to go unseen, and so, if any average person were to see this person on any average day, they would highly doubt that they would be capable of anything gravely dangerous. Yes, they had a certain gleam to their eyes, a false confidence created from an unpleasant ego, a certain manner to them that would lead one to think they had a rather distasteful flaw or a few, but from appearances alone, one would not think that he would seriously harm anyone. But that night, like too many others, there was slick red and splashing water on the streets of Pendragon, and one, two, three, cruelly gone, just like that.

So therefore, that description would have to exclude this night.

* * *

"Lulu!" The Shirley exclaimed as her eyes brightened and darted from the computer screen, swiveling in her chair to face the young man walking into the room, briefly tossing aside the work endlessly offered to her by her boss as quick as she could. "I'm assuming it all went well?"

"It went fine, Shirley." Lelouch answered, sliding his jacket off. She always asked. It had become a ritual of sorts, for her to ask him when he returned, even if Suzaku was already back. "You'd know if it didn't."

"Well, that's good," she span back to her computer. "But don't sound so irritated when I ask. With the job you two have, I have every right to express a little concern!"

"Sorry." Suzaku entered the room just as Shirley expressed her displeasure. "We wouldn't be in this career if we weren't prepared for the worst." He smiled and handed Lelouch a small stack of stapled papers. "Here's the report."

"Thanks." Lelouch took it and skimmed it over briefly. A man on Pendragon's east side had been robbed, not at gunpoint, but with a gun threat nonetheless the day before. A woman reported a similar experience later that day and the suspect's description was near identical. It also so happened that the description and evidence matched up to a murder case from a few weeks before, therefore sending it to Lelouch's team. It hadn't taken long for Suzaku and him to do the research and make the connection, and within hours they had tracked him down using a schedule for a black market he was supposedly connected to.

"…It looks fine, but I'll have to check it for spelling errors." He teased.

"Hey. Spell check ought to have fixed any."

"Some? Yes. _Any_? That's a bit different."

Suzaku rolled his eyes and sat down in a chair nearby and decided it would be best to just change the subject. "You're taking the afternoon off, right?"

"Probably. If there's something urgent I'll have to stay."

"Oh, Lulu," Shirley looked over her shoulder. "I forgot to tell you, Ashford wanted to talk to you, so make sure you get to her before leaving."

"Got it." He scanned her computer screen. "Has she been drowning you in paperwork again?" Lelouch asked. Milly Ashford was well infamous for that.

"Unnngh…" Shirley sulked down on to her keyboard, smashing gibberish patterns of letters onto the screen. "Yes. Some of this is ridiculous too…"

Suzaku chuckled "Ah, don't worry about it too much. It's Ashford; it's what she does best. It can't take forever, I'm sure you can get through it."

"Only with the thought of my paycheck on the horizon."

Lelouch smiled and flipped through his e-mails. Advertisements, a few small replies. Nothing seemed to be of much importance. It added to the utterly ordinary joy that he wasn't sure he'd ever completely adjust to. Shirley had a talent for bringing that.

"Well to get it, you'll have to keep at it~" Milly's musical voice chimed in as she swung the door open, causing Shirley to bolt up straight in fright. She laughed nervously, and started typing away once more. Milly smiled, satisfied, before her face turned grave, instantly altering the mood of the room. "Lelouch, I need to talk to you privately. A case opened up that I think you have the right to know about first."

Silence settled over the previously bustling group. Lelouch narrowed his eyes and stood up, walking across the room to meet his boss.

"Right." He answered calmly, though an edge slipped through his voice.

Detective Lelouch Lamperouge was certainly not without an edge. Immensely brilliant and beautiful, he was an admirable person in those respects. But he was troubled. Whatever he had dealt with, it had affected who he was. He rarely said anything about it and most who worked with him did not even know the nature or extent of those troubles, but were simply well aware that they existed. They all knew only two vague things about his situation: his family was a mess, and his sister was dead. Nothing more. They were left with only guesses after that, which none dared to linger too long on out of respect for what was his private business, but no one could suppress all their thoughts. Almost all of them occasionally found themselves wondering about him with a relentless and unintentional curiosity.

"…Three people were found dead this morning." Milly began, after they were both seated in her office, the doors closed and locked. "All three were shot sometime early this morning and were found in the same location. Two men and a woman and one of the men were dressed formally. None of them are thought to have known each other personally, but they worked at the same place, and there's clearly no doubt that the murders are related."

Lelouch leaned on his elbow. "Three murders, at once… It's unusual and disturbing, yes, but what is it that makes it that I should be told beforehand?"

Milly took a deep breath, preparing herself. "Because… there's a relation to your family."

Lelouch's eyes widened in alarm, and he fought to stifle the chaotic ripple of thoughts racing through his head. "What do _they_ have to do with it?"

She shifted in her seat and met his eyes firmly. "Clovis Lamperouge is a witness and suspect."

The air swelled with a disquieting silence and Milly paused. "You don't have to take this case, Lelouch. We can easily put Kouzuki's team on it." From the little she did know, involving Lelouch could be dangerous ground to tread on, and figured it was worth a shot to say something about it.

But his eyes were hardened and cold. "No. We'll take it." Lelouch answered, standing up. Milly knew that it would be no use to try to talk him out of it now, nor was it any of her business to be trying to do so. "Suzaku and I will head out now. And I'm canceling my afternoon off."

She nodded and let it be, handing him the papers. "Very well. But may I ask why are you taking it?"

He halted before the door. "I'm taking it… because I don't want anyone else to become unnecessarily involved with them."

She suppressed her hesitation. "What about Suzaku?"

"…Suzaku has already been caught up in it, and I…" He stopped short and finished curtly. "We'll be fine." He shook his head and glanced back before opening the door and leaving.

Suzaku met him right away, immediately picking up on Lelouch's mood as he exited their boss' office. His intense expression and piercingly focused eyes added to the mood that emanated from him. "…What is it?"

Lelouch looked away and handed him the thin stack of papers. Suzaku took them and skimmed it over, his eyes slowly growing wider as he read more and more.

"Lelouch…" He looked his friend in the eyes. Lelouch met his gaze firmly and studied his face. He was holding something back.

"This case runs the risk of entanglement with them. It wouldn't be fair to get anyone else caught in their affairs."

Suzaku frowned. "I suppose… you're right…" He handed the papers back to Lelouch with a heavy grip. "We're leaving now?"

"Yes."

"Right then. I'll be ready in a minute." He turned and headed back to his office while Lelouch did the same. In a few minutes they were in the cruiser and on their way there. For the most part, the ride was silent, each of them wrapped in their own thoughts. It was a short trip, so the quiet didn't last long, but the two welcomed the time they did have.

"…Are you worried about your identity?" Suzaku asked as he watched Lelouch shift out of the driver's seat. Lelouch stood up straight and shook his head.

"No. Not yet at least. Clovis and I have little resemblance to each other, and there is more than one Lamperouge family out there. I have no doubt that there will be some research done, but the documents I have should hold up fine."

Suzaku stood up and joined him outside without a word.

"Don't worry. I'll stay alert for any complications. And if something does come up, I'll handle it."

With a sigh, Suzaku shut the car door. "But if anything serious _does_ happen, and you don't have time to handle it how you'd like…"

"…If we need to, we can resign the case for safety." Lelouch finished, with a touch of regret audible in his voice. "Now stop with this and focus. It'll be best to regard this case in the same way we would any other. Did you finish reading the initial information?" He started to walk towards the ally they'd been directed to, Suzaku not far behind.

"Yes. Three victims seemingly killed at roughly the same time. They worked at the same casino, but none of them knew any of the others."

They turned the corner. "There are three people of interest at the moment," Lelouch picked up. "A woman, a young boy, and Clovis Lamperouge. We currently don't have much more information other than that yet."

"I'm assuming that all are ready for questioning at a moment's notice?"

He nodded. "That goes without saying."

They had by now reached the scene, gloves on. Several people were already there, including the kind face that quickly approached them.

"Hi, we just heard that you two were coming," Cecile explained. They exchanged the quickest of glances in understanding. Words had to be chosen carefully from now on—no one other than Suzaku there knew of Lelouch's real family. "Miss. Ashford initially told us that she didn't know who'd be coming, but she just called us to say that you two were on your way." She walked onwards with them next to her.

As expected: three bodies, unceremoniously left on the ground in their drying blood. They had seen too many crimes by now to be deeply unsettled, but every now and then, they still felt somewhat sick in some place at the back of their thoughts. But even that, was too small to register. This was part of their job. If you didn't harden up, it would break you. And alas, they had both lost that softness long before they took up their profession. They lost it as children.

Cecile glanced at the partners. "They were leaving work. The man in formal wear was apparently going out to dinner with his girlfriend, since this was the only time they could find when he could get out of work."

"What were their work hours?" Lelouch asked.

"Ah," She shuffled through some papers. "Sorry. It seems they all had an unusual 4:00 to 4:00 shift. The casino is known for its odd hours."

"Which casino?" He knew the answer already.

"Ah, Dream Night. One of the witnesses is the owner, Clovis Lamperouge. He's the son of Charles Lamperouge… I'm sure you've heard of him."

Lelouch nodded. "It's hard not to have." It was slightly unsettling to Suzaku how convincing Lelouch sounded when the subject came up. Such a flawless act… such ease in lying. _Nonetheless, it _is_ a good thing here. _He reminded himself. Besides, it wasn't like he himself had never lied before...

Lelouch glanced down at his own papers. "And the other two witnesses—the boy and the other woman?"

"The boy seems to have just stumbled upon it while returning to his house. His situation is bad, it seems he was fetching food from the drugstore down the street. The woman on the other hand, works at the casino too, as an advisor. She claimed she was walking with the murdered three until she dropped something and went back to look for it. She and the boy were at the scene when police first arrived."

"We'll talk to the woman first." He turned to face the grinning man nearby. "Asplund, were there any other wounds?"

He shook his head. "Nope. Just gunshot wounds. All to the chest, and one each."

"So whoever shot them was apparently not too concerned with ensuring their deaths. Determine the approximate distance from which they were shot when you're at the lab."

Lelouch knelt down by the bodies, Suzaku and Cecile doing the same beside him. Checking the bullet wound of the nearest body to him, he questioned Cecile without looking away. "Identifications?"

"That man is Robert Darlton, the woman, Sandra Westfield, and the formally dressed man is Arwan Weld."

"When will you have the results from the lab?"

"Complete initial results should be in by tomorrow."

"Right. Thank you, Croomy. Suzaku." He motioned for him to follow.

* * *

"This morning, between 4:00 and 5:00, where were you, and what were you doing, and why were you there?" Lelouch leaned forward onto the table, his hands folded by his face.

The sandy-haired woman shifted uncomfortably. "I had just left work. It's a short walk from the casino to the parking deck. We normally walk in groups to try to stop things like this from happening… and it's only about five minutes, tops." She took a breath. "About two or three minutes in, I realized that I was missing a bracelet. Without thinking, I told the other three that I was going back by myself to check for it."

"How long were you looking for it?" Suzaku asked.

"I don't know. A few minutes, maybe?"

"Had you told them to wait or go on ahead?"

"Go on… so I figured they'd be at the deck by now."

"After you found it and were heading back, did you hear or notice anything that could be considered suspicious?" Lelouch questioned. "Screams, gunshots, odd noises, any other people? If so, at about what relative time?"

"Well, I heard the… gunshots right as I began to walk back, so it must have been… 4:17-ish. Other than that, nothing."

"So if there was any struggle, or notice beforehand, it must have been earlier, when you were farther away. Would you please continue your story?"

"R-right. I was frightened by the gunshots, and wasn't sure if I should turn around, or stop, or what. I couldn't tell what direction they came from so I broke into a run and within a minute I found… them. A little boy was there too."

"Ma'am, you worked with them, correct?" She nodded and Lelouch continued. "Can you think of any reason that any of them would be targeted?"

She shook her head. "No. From what I knew of them, they were all perfectly decent people. No grudges or conflicts, or anything else either, just ordinary people. I can't imagine this being something planned out..." She shuddered. "But I don't know enough about them to give you a full idea."

"…Suzaku, I'm going to call their families and see when I can talk to them. I'm going to talk to the boy afterwards. While I'm doing that, question Clovis Lamperouge." He held his gaze while he spoke, letting his eyes convey his message clearly. "That shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"No, not a problem…" The intensity reflected in Lelouch's eyes unsettled him. There was a merciless and suppressed ferocity in those violet orbs that filled him with a strange and perverse discomfort that instantly made him uneasy.

Lelouch stopped and momentarily switched his attention back to the witness. "You're free to go for now ma'am. Thank you, we'll contact you if you're needed."

"Right. Thank you." She gathered her bag and left the room. The partners were silent again until they heard the door close for certain with a thud and a click.

"Do not, by any means, refer to me by name, and for goodness sake, try your best to avoid the entire damn subject all together." Lelouch whispered tightly once she was gone. He would not have a little slip up destroy everything.

Suzaku struggled to find a good response. "…I will."

Lelouch started to speak again but stopped and his expression softened apologetically. He leaned back slowly and sighed. He hadn't meant to sound so irritated. "I'm sorry. That was unreasonable, you're not incompetent. I'm just…concerned. One slip of the tongue and this entire mess will complicate itself even further."

"No, I can understand. It's fine." But Suzaku's stomach still turned. Why could he not quiet his mind? Reassuring himself that Lelouch would be able to keep everything under control was getting him nowhere.

Lelouch cleared his throat. "…Well then,"

"Best to get going." Suzaku completed for him.

"Yeah." He began to depart, stopping only at the door. "Don't hesitate." He then left the room without saying anything else. Suzaku placed his head in his hands and waited a few minutes to collect his thoughts before fetching Lelouch's brother.

* * *

He really did look almost nothing like Lelouch, save for the fact that both of them were beautiful to the point of appearing rather feminine. Lelouch's hair was a dark brown, essentially black, while his brother's was a golden color. Though both attractive, their faces were actually quite different as well. Lelouch's for the most part emanated calm and poise, with hardened eyes touched with a certain unreachable sadness. This man's face had a conceited light to it, an uninterrupted, high and mighty expression, even when nervous, as he was now. But then again, Suzaku reminded himself that they only shared a father.

"Relax. I'm here to figure this out." Suzaku started, doubting himself once more.

"Oh, please do. Th-they were good workers, they didn't deserve that…" Clovis stammered and shook his head. "I was outside, talking to another worker about the casino—how business was, how the conditions are and such, when I noticed the three walking by and decided to go ask them as well. I'm always looking for feedback. They were ahead of me by quite a bit by the time I got going, and turned into an alleyway. Within seconds I heard gunshots and froze. When I got the courage to move and take a look… well, you know…" He shuddered.

"Did you see anyone at all?"

"No… by the time I got there they were gone. There was just a woman and a little boy standing there, horrified."

Suzaku leaned back in his chair. That wasn't of much help, if it was the truth. The boy might know something else, though. Luckily, Lelouch was already on that.

"I-I'm sorry for the stammering…" Clovis apologized.

"No, no, it's fine." Suzaku said, waving his hand.

"I can't stand gun-based murders… A gunman killed my brother and sister when they were children." Suzaku's eyes widened slightly. He doubted Clovis knew it, but that wasn't a real story. "They never caught him… now this, well, it's a bit much. Are you all right?"

Suzaku inhaled sharply and slowly released his fist. Why did he have to bring him up? "I'm sorry. I heard about that… on the news. But please, we have to focus on the case at hand."

"Oh, purely my fault, I'm sorry. I'm afraid I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve. Go on… I don't believe I got your name?"

"Oh, Detective Suzaku Kururugi."

Suzaku could have sworn that Clovis gave him a look, but he dismissed it and continued the questioning.

* * *

"Hello." It had surprised Shirley the first time she heard his voice so gentle, and remembering his expression, he was fairly sure that Suzaku had been struck by it as well. His air became soothing and comforting, his pretty features gentle and kind. There was a good reason that Lelouch often questioned the children if they were ever involved in investigations: they relaxed around him. The boy looked up. He was eight, wide eyed, and of average height and size for his age. He was clearly still shaken up, and it couldn't be comfortable to be sitting in a witness room at a police station. Lelouch sat down across from him. "I'm just going to ask you a few questions, all right? It'll be quick." The boy nodded. "Could you start by telling me how it all happened?"

"Well, my brother and I were returning from the store down the street. We had gone out to buy some things to eat. We had done it before so it wasn't anything new. My brother is 19, so it's safer to go with him. We had gone down, bought a few things and were heading back. I thought I saw a friend of mine cross the street up ahead so I ran ahead of my brother… my mom has told me not to do that, but I just did it anyways. When I looked back, my brother was way behind. I think he tried to run to catch up, but he dropped the bag. I decided to go back to a walk, I just continued along… until I saw the alley…" He gulped and shivered a bit.

"Don't worry. Continue when you're ready." The boy nodded again.

"I saw five people there. It was too dark to see any of their faces though… then I heard the gunshots, and they each dropped… and… and then, that person was gone."

"Were you alone?" Lelouch asked.

"I was, but a woman came soon after, followed by a man."

"What did they look like?"

"The woman had long light-brown hair, past her shoulders. She was wearing a blue dress… And the man was blonde, wearing a purple jacket."

_Blonde? Then Clovis came afterwards? _He doubted it. That was impossible…

"Like this?" He shuffled through his papers and pulled out two pictures. The boy nodded once again. Lelouch returned the pictures to the stack and folded his hands by his face. "I see. Thank you. What you've said is going to prove helpful." He smiled as the boy's face brightened a bit. "Your parents are outside. Go ahead." He slid out of the chair and out the door, waving briefly. Lelouch waved back, before his smile disappeared completely into a frustrated scowl. Things had just gotten complicated.

* * *

_"Brother?" _

_Her voice sounded so small in the inky darkness. Only a thin moon in the small patch of sky showing through the window lit the black night. Lelouch took her hands in. "I'm here." He whispered, mustering all the strength he possessed. She was trembling. _

_ "I-I… He…" She stammered, her voice edging on tears._

_ "Shh. No one's making you talk. Say it only when you know you can."_

_ She whimpered down further into his arms and Lelouch's stomach lurched. She was wet. And warm._

_ "Nunnally!" He gasped. Horror struck him. She'd been injured before, both of them had. But it was never more than a bruise or a small cut…_

_ "Father." She whispered. "He was… angry."_

_ Lelouch's eyes were wide and fearful. He gingerly touched her back; she winced slightly, but held his hand tight. There was a long, fresh cut stretching from shoulder to waist. He had no way of knowing how deep it was. _

_ "I-I don't know everything that happened… but there was glass and plates everywhere…" She choked back a sob._

_ "N-Nunnally…This, this is…" Lelouch grit his teeth, an insuppressible mixture of rage, horror, and fear growing within him. They had both endured; waiting for the day when they might leave this cage they were trapped within. Now his worst fears had come true. Nunnally was in danger. Serious danger. Staying any longer could mean that she could…_

"_Brother…?"_

"_H-hold on. I'm going to try to bandage you up." He reached over with one hand and grabbed his blanket and began tearing it into thin long strips to the best of his ability. He warned Nunnally that it might hurt before tying them around her wounded back, his fingers fumbling from the shock and lack of proper lighting. "Sorry…" He said. "I'd get the bandages, but I don't think I could without being noticed. This'll have to do." He looked to his right at the small bed a few feet away. "Do you think you can make it to the bed if I lift you?"_

_She moved a bit. "I think."_

_Lelouch took a deep breath. "All right." He slid his arm under her legs and carefully—around her shoulders. With quite a bit of effort, he lifted her up, apologizing over and over in his head for the pain he knew she felt as he moved her small form. Luckily, she was quickly onto the bed and resting._

"_Ha, silly brother… you can't lift me well, can you? You're arms are so skinny."_

"_Ha…" Lelouch smiled half-heartedly. She was trying so hard. "I'm going to find Sayako, she'll help you. I'll be back as soon as I can." He took her hand and squeezed it again. "I promise, we're going to get out. And not just when were older. We're getting out of here as soon as we possibly can." _

"_I trust you." She replied and squeezed his hand in return, and he hesitantly left the room._

_

* * *

_

Lelouch's eyes flew open as he was ripped from his thoughts upon hearing a light knocking on his door, followed by the doorbell. He slowly relaxed; loosening his grip on his bed sheets, and ran his hand through his longish black hair before unsteadily rising from the edge of his bed where he sat and heading towards the door. He took a deep breath, attempting to refocus himself on the present. It seemed that someone always came while he was vulnerable, stuck in a waking nightmare of twisted memories that resurfaced every now and then to haunt him.

"Suzaku?" The brunette was standing in the hallway of the apartment complex outside of his door. He held a grocery bag in one hand and looked rather tired, with dark circles under his eyes and messi_er_ hair, as if he hadn't rested a minute all day. Lelouch rubbed his eye and glanced at his watch. 11:00 P.M. No wonder. "What is it?"

"I just wanted to talk to you about something." He answered, a bit too formally.

Just what that would be was rather predictable. "The case?"

"Yeah."

"Come in." Lelouch opened the door wider and stepped out of the way so his partner could enter, then shut the door and walked towards the central room of the apartment, motioning for Suzaku to follow him. It wasn't a very large place, just a living room, a small kitchen, and two bedrooms. Though it was very clean, and the furniture was all very nice—on the upper end of the spectrum.

"Do you want anything to drink?" Lelouch asked.

"No, I'm good." Suzaku replied as he sat down in a chair, dropping his bag beside him.

Lelouch nodded. "I take it something's bothering you," He said, sitting down across from Suzaku. "Or else you wouldn't be coming at this time."

"Hm… I guess you could say that." His line of sight was fixed out the window. It was hard to see out there in the dark, but if he recalled correctly, it wasn't the most spectacular of views anyways—just another street and some plain, dark old buildings.

"_He seemed a bit… uncomfortable." Suzaku had said._

"_He's normally like that," Lelouch informed him. "I wouldn't use that as any sort indication. The fact that police were questioning him probably didn't help either. Continue."_

"_Other than that, he was very polite. He didn't actually see anything. According to his story, he came right as the gunman left, so as far as I know, there wasn't anything of much use."_

"_I see… the boy had helpful information. He saw the murders, but unfortunately, no faces or distinguishing features."_

"_So what was it?"_

"_He said that the woman came after he did. And so did Clovis." He watched Suzaku's eyes widen. _

_ "So that essentially eliminates them…"_

_ "I'm not counting either out yet. We still don't know enough." In his peripheral vision he could see Suzaku studying him intensely, nearly angrily, he could have sworn. "I did get into contact with the families, but they won't be able to come in until tomorrow. I have them set to be here at 7:30 in the morning."_

"_So there's little point in hanging around?"_

"_Precisely my point. I'm going to research something quickly, so go on ahead."_

Lelouch was unimpressed. "So, yes?"

Suzaku heaved a sigh. "Fine, yes, I am. And you're going to scold me about how we've already been over everything, but I can't shake my mind from it."

Lelouch crossed his legs and fixed his gaze on Suzaku. His expression wasn't that of irritation or anger, but something more concerned or pensive. "I'm not going to scold you, nor will I repeat what I've already said, but if you're intending to try and change my mind, you won't be getting anywhere quickly. I refuse to back out of this."

Giving a half-hearted chuckle, Suzaku looked away. "I should have figured that much."

"I've already told you. This is my business."

"That's exactly what I'm worried about." Lelouch narrowed his eyes, but remained silent. Suzaku was beginning to realize that holding in his thoughts was not getting him anywhere. It would be best just to say it. "…You have a bias. Even after that boy told you that Clovis arrived after the murder was committed, you still believe he did it."

Suzaku braced himself for the answer he knew was coming. "I do." He heard him say with a brutal frankness that contained not the slightest hint of remorse. "I fully believe that Clovis is the murderer, even now. I take it you have objections to that?"

"Of course, because we shouldn't even be handling this case if that's how it really is! Your judgment is skewed!" He felt sick. Though he already knew it, it was far worse when it came up to the surface and was confirmed from his friend's own mouth.

"My judgment is skewed? How would you be sure of that? Are you myself? Do you know exactly what my thinking is, do you know how I'll handle this?" Suzaku didn't answer. "Exactly. I do entirely believe that Clovis murdered them, but unlike you, I can separate my emotions from my profession."

Suzaku couldn't respond. He just sat back in the chair, defeated. He _could _separate his emotions from his work… right? This wasn't getting anywhere, and he began to wish that he hadn't bothered to come here to talk. "Fine." He mumbled eventually, throwing his hand into the air. "You win. We'll keep at it."

Lelouch folded his hands in his lap, satisfied. At the same time, he was trying his best to hide the slightly downcast look was almost certainly traceable in his expression, giving away his unease at their exchange. Their personalities made them prone to occasional disagreements, but rarely like this.

Suzaku grasped at his grocery bag and picked it up as he stood. "I'm leaving. See you." He buttoned his coat and left the apartment without waiting for Lelouch to see him off, and sighed heavily once the door was firmly shut and his friend could not see him.

* * *

"Lelouch."

He looked up from the paperwork to see Milly enter his office. Her folded arms and notably absent smile gave away her concern. "…How's the case?" She asked, taking a step further into the room.

"It's fine." Judging by her apparent mood, he sensed it was not a good idea to get very elaborate with the details at this point. "The victims' families will be coming in today for questioning. They should be here within a half an hour."

"Oh, good. Well, I wouldn't expect anything less from you." Lelouch returned his attention to writing, the scribble of his pen the only sound in the room. "I have no doubt that it's going well technically, but this case is more than just that."

Lelouch dropped his pen and glowered. "I'm fine. This is not a problem for me."

"Is that so? You fought with Suzaku yesterday, didn't you?" She replied simply, picking the question that nailed him squarely.

Lelouch bit his lip. Suzaku. They had hardly said a word to each other since yesterday, only a small "Good morning" and a few quick words about the case, all made as quietly and as quickly as possible in a shared desire to keep their distance as much as they could. "…And? It was merely a small argument, not a complete falling out." He replied. It was true, but it seemed that Milly had to make everyone's business her own. As far as he could see, she had no place in their little quarrel.

"I know, but it's not right to see you two like that. You're so close. You've been friends since high school, right?" Lelouch didn't answer her and continued to stare at the papers below him. "I'm just saying. I like you two together. Don't cast your friendship aside for things that should bring you closer together."

Lelouch sighed and looked up at his boss, his eyes insisting that she leave him be. He was not at all in the mood for a lecture, let alone one over a small fight such as this.

She quickly gave in. "All right, I'll go. But don't spend all week like this. It's uncomfortable to watch, and Shirley's a bit upset about it… you know how she gets."

She waited briefly for an answer before figuring she wasn't going to get one and left Lelouch to his thoughts. He watched her shut the door while absently fiddling with his pen. A few minutes later, Shirley tentatively poked her head in to tell him one of the families had arrived. He grabbed a few of the papers before exiting his office. Shirley was already halfway down the hall by the time he had reached the spot where she had just been. Milly wasn't lying. Starting to feel a bit frustrated, he headed down to the witness room where Suzaku was waiting outside.

"Hello." His greeting was bland. "Himawari Nakagawa, Weld's girlfriend, is already in."

"Oh, good." Lelouch's response was equally flat. He cut off the conversation by twisting the handle and opening the door. He stepped inside with Suzaku right behind him.

"Himawari? Detective Lelouch Lamperouge, Pendragon Police Department. Thank you for coming in today."

The dark haired woman sat with her head down, still visibly upset over the events of the day before. "No, it's not a problem." Her eyes were still red, but she had a certain strength buried in them somewhere. The two detectives sat down across from her.

"Can you think of any reason someone would want to kill him? Did he have any family issues, money issues, grudges?"

"No, not at all. He was very kind and caring, and his family is very tightly knit, I don't think he ever had issues with them. He didn't even get into fights while in high school or middle school… he was too gentle."

"Then did he have any issues with his work?"

She paused. "He didn't like casinos, or gambling. He worked at Dream Night because he lost his job as computer technician and couldn't find work anywhere else. It offered him a chance… but the odd hours didn't suit him well, nor did the atmosphere. Though I don't think he had any arguments or voiced complaints…" She wiped at her eyes with the palm of her hands. "I'm sorry."

"No, it's perfectly all right…" Lelouch stopped. A thought suddenly hit him, but he had no way of proving it quite yet. "Thank you very much ma'am. If you don't mind, we're going to have you wait here for now. We'll be back shortly." He shoved his chair out and glanced at Suzaku, ordering him to follow. The other detective almost reluctantly followed him out of the room and into the hallway.

"What is it?" Suzaku growled under his breath.

"Apparently, Arwan didn't like casinos." Lelouch replied coolly, gesturing at the door. "I think it's worth asking the other two families what their loved ones' opinion was." Suzaku's expression remained doubtful, but he nodded reluctantly.

* * *

It was just like he had expected. Each and every one of them had held the exact same opinion.

"Whoever murdered them must have had some motive relating to it. It's too much of a coincidence." Suzaku commented, looking at the sprawling web of connections they had organized. Lelouch raised his eyebrows, but Suzaku crossed his arms and shook his head. "A little boy told you the facts. A_ little boy._"

"I can think of several scenarios to counter that, and so can you."

"And what are the chances of any of those being remotely correct?" Suzaku glared straight ahead at the chart.

"I believe they've just gotten higher than you were expecting." Out of responses, he did not reply and Lelouch left him there.

A week passed by them, the days blurring by for each office member in an unstoppable current. Lelouch and Suzaku hardly said a word to each other outside of what was necessary, and still, the investigation got almost nowhere. They had hit a roadblock. The evidence they found was making less and less sense, not connecting together in even the slightest way at times.

Lelouch walked through the police department, lost in thought, with a dim sense of error. Maybe Suzaku was right. Maybe he couldn't completely detach his emotions and that bias was interfering with his work. The chances that Clovis was the culprit were slim to none, and he knew it well. It was quite possible that his connection, his partiality, were getting in the way. But still, he couldn't just let something do with his family slide right by him, this _was _his business, not Kouzuki's, not Milly's, not anyone else's. Not even…

"Mr. Lamperouge?"

Lelouch stopped, feeling someone touch his arm gently, but no one was there beside him. His eyes drifted down slightly, and he found his answer. It was the boy who had witnesses the murder; he was in the offices for more questioning that day. His parents were down the hall, turned away. "Ah… yes?"

"I need to tell you something. It's v-very important, I think you really need to know it."

Lelouch blinked and an ominous feeling flooded over him. The child's voice was trembling, and a dark serious tone haunted what should be a playful and relaxed sound. "Follow me." He led the child into the nearby witness room and kneeled down so he was at his eyelevel.

"I didn't tell you the truth." He looked like he was about to break down in sobs.

Lelouch inhaled sharply. "About what?"

"About the blonde man. He was already there. H-he, told another man to shoot them. The murders were his plan. He s-saw me, and told me that he would shoot my brother and me if I told anyone so… so…"

"…You were afraid…" Lelouch closed his eyes, a million thoughts orderly rushing through his mind. His bias wasn't in the way after all.

"Am I… in trouble?"

"No… you should have told us right away, but you're fine." Under normal circumstances, he would be. But as a child, and one that was threatened, there would most likely be no repercussions. "Thank you." He squeezed the child's hands loosely. "You and your brother will be fine. Nothing is going to happen to you guys, I promise."

He sniffed, tears welling at his eyes, but nodded a 'yes.' Lelouch stood up, restless and quickly. "I'm going to get your parents, do you want to come with me so you won't have to be alone here?" He didn't answer but followed the raven-haired detective out of the room.

One moment had completely turned the tables. If what the kid said was right, he really had been right all along. But now the question was, would Suzaku trust him? He would just have to wait and see.

Or, he could complete the thought that had been interrupted by the boy. He had just been thinking that this wasn't Kouzuki, Milly, Shirley, or anyone else at the office's problem. Including _Suzaku_. And now, with this information, he could easily handle this by himself… he could end this case and a family issue, or at least part of one, in a single swift move.

A devious smile slowly crept across his face. That was exactly what he was going to do.

* * *

The sky was a brilliant orange, slowly turning red as the sun sunk in the sky and the night slowly began to take over the last reaches of the day. Night was coming fast and the shadows of the back alley concealed the two forms perfectly.

"Well, I'm here, aren't I? Are you coming out?" Clovis shouted into the shadows with no real sense of where or who the call was intended. "I'm rather busy…"

"That fake confidence is terrible at hiding things. Your voice is trembling." He smirked. "You really haven't changed at all." Lelouch walked towards him, hands relaxed in his coat pockets, protected from the chilly autumn air.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Clovis raised his chin a bit higher and took a step back. "And how would you know me? You're just a…" He paused, studying the young man's face a bit more carefully. "No… you couldn't be… that's impossible."

Lelouch drew a gun, pointing it at Clovis with not a trace of guilt in his cold smile. One hand was still casually in his pocket. "It's been a while, hasn't it, brother?" He gazed at the weapon in his hand, verging on savoring the moment. "The tables have been turned this time."

"L-Lelouch!" He cowered back further. "You're dead! You and Nunnally were shot all those years ago! You two, you two…" His voice faded out. "H-How is she? N-Nunnally! If you're alive then she must be-"

"Nunnally is dead." He interjected, his voice like cold steel. "She died ten years ago." His grip tightened around the gun until his hand began to shake, but he was careful not to put any pressure on the trigger. "So, let's move off that subject, shall we? You've moved from torturing your siblings to murdering innocents?"

"Lelouch, come on! I never once beat either you or Nunnally! I always cared for you two, you know it! Please, let me go, I-I haven't done anything."

"Oh really? Did you not arrange things when we were younger?"

Clovis gulped, eyeing the gun jumpily. "I, I, yes… I-I'd anger father or your mother and let them on you… But you already knew that. So what _do_ you want?"

Lelouch shook, trying hard to suppress the tidal waves of memories crashing in on him. Nunnally and himself, curled up, all alone in that little room, so ironically filled with fine furniture and clothes. He steadied his hand and narrowed his eyes. He couldn't let it overtake him now. "You arranged their deaths. You ordered someone to kill them for you."

"I didn't do-"

Lelouch stepped forward, gun still up. "Speak the truth now, will you?"

"I-I-I…" He froze before wildly letting his words spill out. "I ordered my bodyguard to kill them! All right?" He took a deep breath before continuing, re-gathering his self-control. "The three of them were fools, they walked right into it. I told him to shoot the three of them when they came into the alleyway."

Lelouch lowered the gun slightly. "Why?"

"I won't say that much, I'm your brother; you'll spare me that… you have to! I've told you the truth, now let me go! I'll go to jail, or whatever you want, but spare my life, that's all I ask!"

"Hm. Well-" He made a move to raise the gun once more, but stopped mid-motion at the sight of movement to his left and pocketed the gun, taking another one out of his left pocket and pointing it at the man walking towards him.

Clovis' eyes widened, half shocked, half surprised, unsure if he was relieved, or more terrified of his half-brother due to the bluff he had just pulled off. "It… wasn't loaded?"

Lelouch just smiled coldly once again. Unfortunately, killing Clovis would only make matters with his family worse. "We wouldn't want anyone getting hurt… would we?" The person who had just entered the scene had a gun as well, and it was pointed at him. "Care to identify yourself?"  
The man was silent, but the dark suit and a quick glance at Clovis' expression quickly gave away the fact that the newcomer was his aforementioned bodyguard.

"Pendragon Police Department." Lelouch slowly pulled out his badge. "Drop your gun." Not to his surprise, the bodyguard ignored him. "Drop your gun." He repeated. Still nothing. His body tensed, preparing for hell to break loose in an instant.

"Listen to him. Drop the gun." Suzaku's voice rang out softly from behind the man. His own gun was out, confidently aimed at the tall man, inches from his back. With two guns aimed at him, he listened, and let the handgun drop to the ground. Suzaku quickly handcuffed him without another words as Lelouch approached Clovis, now on the ground, eyes wide with fear. "You're under arrest." Lelouch informed him quietly. "For conspiring to murder."

* * *

"_What?" Lelouch stared at the brunette uncertainly._

"_I'm sorry, it's just that my car's tires were slashed." He stood, school case in one hand, his other hand in his ridiculously messy hair. "And I was wondering if you could give me a ride…?"_

"_I don't have a car."_

"_Oh." He looked disappointed. "Well, that's okay, I'm sure I can find someone else…" He glanced around at the empty parking lot. It was quite late in the afternoon, past 6:00. They were pretty much the only people still on campus._

_Lelouch sighed. "Get on." _

"_Excuse me?" _

_Lelouch was now sitting on the bike that he had been unlocking from the rack as they spoke. "It's not much, but it's better than walking." _

"_Ah, thank you!" He jumped up onto it and stood up behind Lelouch, putting his arms around him. "Is this fine?" Lelouch nodded. The other boy was now laughing, and he couldn't help but think of how odd he seemed._

"_I've seen you around, but I never got your name." The boy said, peering over his shoulder._

"_Oh, Lelouch Lamperouge."_

"_I'm Suzaku Kururugi. Nice to meet you."_

_And they were off. Within 10 minutes, Lelouch was exhausted and a laughing Suzaku had convinced him to switch positions and let him pedal the bike. He apologized for his lack of stamina, but somehow ended up laughing a bit too._

_

* * *

_

As they talked in his office, Lelouch avoided looking at his large green eyes.

"You were confronting him yourself, weren't you?"

"…"

"I'm not angry." Suzaku rested his forehead in his palm, elbow propped up on the chair's armrest.

Lelouch noticed that an air of stressfulness still surrounded his friend. He closed his eyes. "…Yes, I met him there, but I gathered the evidence, did I not?" He had recorded Clovis's confession, just to be sure. "So there. You know that much, and I'm not worried… you won't even tell anyone that the meeting was arranged."  
Suzaku just laughed quietly and shook his head. "Damn it Lelouch. You know me too well."

Lelouch managed a small smile. "So it seems." The awkward conversation then dropped off into silence. They still didn't know what Clovis' motive had been. Interrogations had begun, but they had apparently not gotten very far. Lelouch had told Suzaku earlier that he believed that Clovis may had been influenced by someone—possibly from his family, to arrange the murders. Of course, he had no definitive evidence of that yet, so it remained but a theory. A theory that Suzaku had to admit was quite possibly true.

"You knew that I followed, didn't you? Why didn't you do anything about it?" Suzaku finally asked, knowing that Lelouch was practically waiting for him to say it.

"I did." He replied. "I suppose I figured that shaking you would be more trouble than it was worth, and that you were far enough behind to not be…"

"Just say it… so I wouldn't be a bother?"

"It's not you personally, but yes, something like that."

Suzaku eyed him doubtfully. "Despite our argument?"

"It honestly had nothing to do with that, I would have done the same thing, regardless of whether we argued or not." He answered with a sigh.

Suzaku gave up after that. "Then knowing you, I won't be hearing the full explanation anytime soon." Lelouch didn't reply, so he took it as a yes. "I'm not surprised. That's just like you… I won't even begin to ask about what happened back there, at least not now." He paused and hoped that it wouldn't come to that. Shoving back the dark suspicions rising in his mind, he changed the subject. "You know… about that argument… I was concerned for you. With that case, no one was in more danger than yourself, and you were well aware of it. That's why I followed you as well."

"Are you apologizing?"

"I guess I am. But I really am telling the truth about it. You said it yourself—accepting that case was far from being the safest option."

Lelouch finally looked straight at him. "Then I should be apologizing too. Are we both forgiven?"

Suzaku smiled. "Yeah." His tone suddenly did a 180˚. "But…"

"But what?"

"…What about now? Will your family attempt to take action against us personally?"

Lelouch shut his eyes. "Obviously protective measures will be taken, but there's no way for us to tell for sure what will happen right now. It's going to be a matter of just waiting and seeing what comes our way." He left out that there was little he could do to prevent Clovis from telling his family the truth about himself and Nunnally. He had suspicions that they never completely bought it, but things would almost certainly be confirmed for them now.

Suzaku was clearly displeased with what he heard, but sighed and accepted it. There really wasn't anything they could do, what was the point in trying? Lelouch's expression was gentle and tired; looking at it was stirring Suzaku's curiosity, the morbid interest in the darkest parts of his family that even he had not heard about. Those things he kept hidden, things locked down somewhere so deep within himself where no one could touch them, where no one would know. Suzaku suppressed a shudder. Would he want to know?

Or would Lelouch want to know, about him?

"Suzaku?"

"Yes?" His answer came quickly, but he managed to contain any stutter or intonation that would give away his previous thoughts.

"Perhaps you should leave now. Get some rest."

"Ah," He leaned back in his chair. "That might be a good idea." He nearly protested, but his thoughts were getting to him, and that could easily take him to ground that he was ready to tread upon yet. He slid the chair back and stood up.

"…You get some rest too."

Lelouch, now writing away on a notepad, his eyes hidden by the curtain of his black bangs, just smiled, not looking up. Suzaku sighed and headed for the door. "Good night." He said as he opened it.

"Night." The door closed with an echoing thud. Lelouch continued to write for several seconds afterwards before he dropped his pen and folded his hands thoughtfully.

Oh, he really needed a drink.

* * *

Thanks for reading, reviews are always appreciated!


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